"The Gallery Kinsale" is proud to represent its home county-Cork together with other counties in showcasing Ireland in an Exhibition in the heart of Brussels cultural district during Ireland's EU Presidency. A completely voluntary initiative, the Gallery has invested substantially in the project and is showcasing approximately €100,000 worth of contemporary Irish Fine Art to Europe during this prestigious event.

The exhibition will run for 2 months from opening night 7th March to April 28th at Halle St-Gery Brussels, the cultural heartbeat of the city. This is the single biggest non-governmental cultural programme during Irelands EU presidency in the EU capital.

The Gallery Kinsale Irish in Europe Art & Photo Exhibition specifically seeks to Bring Brussels and Ireland closer together in Europe. It aims to help the export of Irish art, crafts, food and other goods and build better bilateral, cultural and business relations between Ireland and Belgium with a range of additional cultural activities and exchange programmes that will run alongside the exhibition at various dates and continue after the 50 day exhibition. There will be Irish Food weeks, County Evenings, Concerts, Music nights, Heritage and Cultural Talks, St. Patricks Day Parade of the Nations and Regions and the Irish in Europe celebrations with a few other surprises to let Belgian residents know that Ireland as a cultural Mecca is ready to welcome and entertain them.

"We are very grateful to our exhibiting artists we have chosen. This honour to showcase the richness of the visual arts from Ireland is one they have not taken lightly and we are very confident of an overwhelming positive reaction to the quality, originality and prestige they will reflect on our visual arts".

The chosen artists for the exhibition are: Philip Gray, Jimmy Lawlor, Bill Griffin, Mia Funk, Desmond Downes, Annemarie Bourke, Katarzyna Gajewska, Ken Browne and Vincent Crotty. It includes Fine Art Photographer and member of the Belgian Diaspora in Ireland, Kinsale resident Giles Norman. Also in the line up is US National, acclaimed photographer Ron Rosenstock. Ron is an honorary citizen of Westport and former Grand Marshal of the Westport Saint Patrick's Day Parade.